the next summer flaxie had a baby brother named philip lally gray. flaxie said he was "as good as any of the rest of the family, and lots better."
she loved him dearly; and perhaps it was in loving him that she learned to become unselfish. by the time he was a year old, he had pulled her hair, and scratched her face, and given her a great deal of trouble; but the more he tried her patience, the more her patience grew.
"really, she is almost as sweet as ninny," said mrs. gray to her husband.
when philip was thirteen months old, he had no teeth, and flaxie grieved about it. her own were falling out, and she wished she could give them to her baby brother.
"never mind," said dr. papa. "if he never has any teeth of his own, i will buy him some gold ones."
"o, that'll be so nice," cried flaxie. "i never saw any gold teeth in all my life."
that year, late in september, flaxie frizzle went with her mamma and baby phil to the city of louisville, in kentucky, to see grandpa and grandma curtis. dr. gray staid at home with ninny and preston.
"poor papa couldn't come, 'cause he has to give folks their mederson," explained miss frizzle, before she had taken off her bonnet in grandma's parlor.
"too bad," laughed pretty grandma curtis, who was ever and ever so much younger than grandma pressy, and didn't even wear a cap. "but we are glad he could send his little daughter."
no wonder she was glad! flaxie was all pink and white, with a mouth made up for kisses, and eyes laughing like the sky after a shower. the colored girl, venus, had never seen her before; but she loved her in a moment, for flaxie threw both arms around her neck and kissed her, like a butterfly alighting on a black velvet rose.
but that night flaxie did not seem quite well, and the next morning she was worse; she could not even hold the baby.
"they're so glad i've got the mumps," said she, two or three days afterward, as she lay on the sofa, with hot, swelled cheeks and parched lips that tried to smile.
the remark was made to peppermint drop, the doll of her bosom; but black venus took it to herself.
"and what makes 'em glad you're sick?" said she.
"'cause my mamma wants me to have the mumps all done, venus, and then she can go to my 'nother grandma's next week. i've got lots of grandmas. she's going to see this one next week, and take the baby."
"yes," said venus, dusting the chairs; "and prob'ly if you get well she'll take you too."
"no, o, no: she don't think's best," replied flaxie, dropping a hot tear on peppermint drop's bosom, which would have melted it a little if it had been made of sugar instead of bran. "grandma hyde lives in the other town, 'way off, down[86] where the boats go; and mamma says she can't take but one childrens. she's drefful sorry; but she don't think best."
and the little girl dried her eyes on her doll's bib-apron; for she heard some one coming, and didn't want to be a baby.
it was mamma, with phil in her arms, fresh from his morning bath, bright, wide-awake, and ready for mischief. his hair was golden,—darker even now than flaxie's,—and his eyes were the richest brown.
"shall i let him go?" asked mamma, as if he were a wild creature, and they generally kept him in chains.
"yes, mamma, let him go."
and, when she dropped her hold of him, he rushed at his sister, and "hugged her grizzly," as she called it, like the most affectionate of little bears.
"won't grandma hyde be exprised to see him? she'll love you and thank you dearly," said flaxie.
"i'm a little ashamed of him," laughed mrs. gray. "you know he has only one tooth."
"well, he hasn't much teeth, and he can't talk; but he can stand on his head so cunnin'! phil want to go in boat? want see gamma hyde, and hug her grizzly?"
was this our cross flaxie? indeed, she was almost as sweet as ninny—sometimes!
when the day came for going to shawneetown, where grandma hyde lived, flaxie had got her mumps "all done," and was allowed to ride down in a hack to the "jennie howell," and see mamma off.
little phil wore a white dress and a soft white cloak, with silk acorns and leaves embroidered all over it; and a white cap with a white cockade set on top of his gold rings of hair. he looked like a prince; and his mother called him, "'philip, my king.'"
the last thing flaxie saw him do was to throw kisses at a hen-coop which somebody was putting on board the boat. he thought there were chickens in it, and i suppose there were.
flaxie looked rather sober as she rode back in the hack with grandma curtis. "he never went to shawtown before," said she; "and he isn't much 'quainted with strangers. i spect i ought to gone with him."
"i spect he'll get along beautifully," replied grandma curtis, hugging flaxie; "but, if you are needed, your mamma can send a dispatch, you know."
she little thought mrs. gray would really send a dispatch.
mrs. gray and the baby steamed slowly down the ohio,—very slowly; for the water was so low that in many places you could see the bottom of the river. once the boat stuck fast for an hour or two on a sand-bar.
"i am glad it is not a snag," thought mrs. gray; "that would make me afraid."
a snag is a dead tree; and, when the river is low, it sometimes scrapes the bottom of the boat, and makes holes in it.
after supper she undressed philly and put him in his little berth; for they were not likely to reach shawneetown, at this rate, before morning.
"they are all longing to see us," thought mrs. gray, kissing her sleeping baby. mrs. hyde was her own mother, and they had not met for two years. "o, yes, philly, your grandma has a nice supper ready, and your aunt floy has been at the window all the afternoon. how slowly we do go. hush, philly, don't cry,—
'the owl and the pussy cat went to sea,
in a beautiful pea-green boat.'"
philly dropped off to sleep at last. his mother put him in the upper berth, and lay down herself on the lower berth, without undressing. she was quiet and happy, listening to the baby's breathing, and thinking of the griddle-cakes and honey grandma would give her for breakfast, when suddenly she was roused by frightful screams.
the boat was leaking! a great snag, which stood up in the river like a horned beast, had seized it and torn holes in its sides. it was of no use trying to stop the[91] leak; the boat was sinking fast; all that could be done was to get out the people.
the captain and his men worked terribly, taking them off into life-boats; but there was such a hurry and such a fright that it was not possible to save everybody. some of the passengers went down. among them were some bewildered little children, who did not know what had happened till they woke in heaven, and the angels told them the story.
mrs. gray was one of the people saved; but where was her precious baby? the men said they did not know, he was nowhere to be seen, and even his little bed had been washed away!
"go without philly? go without my baby? i can't do it, i can't do it," cried the poor mother.
but two of the good men seized her and dragged her into the life-boat. they would save her in spite of herself.
dear mrs. gray, who had thought so much of seeing her mother and sister, and showing them her baby! she was taken in a carriage with the other passengers to shawneetown, just where she had all the time intended to go; but, o, what a sad meeting! her mother and her sister floy met her at the door, not knowing what had happened.
"my baby is lost, my baby is lost!" wailed she, and fainted away in aunt kitty's arms.
a dispatch was sent to grandma curtis at louisville, and another to dr. gray at rosewood, new york. the poor doctor was wakened in the middle of the night to learn that his little boy was drowned!
morning came at last; it always comes. the sun shone too; it is just as likely to shine when people are sad as when they are happy. but what a long day it was to that wretched mother! what a long day to her husband, who started before sunrise to go to meet her!
in the evening, before dr. gray could possibly get there, a strange man called at grandma hyde's and asked if mrs. gray was in the house?
"she is," replied aunt floy, whose eyes were red with weeping. "i hope you haven't any more bad news for her! she can't bear any more!"
"i don't believe it's bad news," replied the man, with something that was almost a smile. "did mrs. gray lose a child on the wreck of the 'jennie howell' last night?"
"yes, sir, a baby. speak low."
"well," said the man, dropping his voice to a whisper, "i am pilot of the 'jennie howell,' ma'am. i went down to look at her this morning; and what should i see but a mattress, ma'am, floating in the cabin, most up to the ceiling, and a live baby on top of it!"
"a live baby? o, not a live baby!"
"yes, ma'am, sleeping as sweet as a lamb! my wife has got him now over here to the hotel—a pretty little yellow-haired shaver, as—"
"o, it's philly! where is he? bring him this minute! i know it's philly!"
and so it was; for, my dears, this is a true story. it was philip gray; and he had been saved almost by a miracle. was the finding of moses in the bulrushes so strange a thing as this?
his mother was driven to the hotel, where the pilot's wife sat in the public parlor with a baby in her lap.
"o, my boy!" cried mrs. gray.
and he rushed into her arms with a gleeful shout,—her own precious "'philip my king.'"
